Melbourne: October 23, 2012

I made my first friend!

On my own. With no connection to them aside from myself. Although not a life changing thing, it is significant. I’m not failing!

But you might say I went on a hell of an adventure earlier this month. It started with me contemplating the basic human instinct to run. Fight or flight. In some way or another every living humans initial reaction to anything is either to fight, create a corresponding effect in return, or flight, be affected by our interacting with our environment. I think if you fight an incredibly impulse to fight or flight, you’re bound to grow. This whole trip almost turned into me running away, but I was reminded that day that another basic urge is to explore and to succeed. I’m going to succeed, I’m going to overcome the urge to run: to not open up to others. I won’t hide behind the guise of who I’ve been in the past.

I’ve got this lovely process in my head; optimistic and full of opportunity! Which brings up the inevitable question of how I found myself running erratically through the streets? Let me tell you that story: we had run out of toilet paper at the good ol’ Irish Party House I’ve found myself living in, so I took the opportunity to run to the gas station across the street. Which was closed. Not a big deal. So I walked the 5 to 10 minute walk to the closest 7/11. (7/11 is universal by the way! One of the best things I learned when I moved here). On the return trip a car had pulled over just ahead of me on the completely empty street in the middle of the night.

Well I guess I should give you some backstory. Let me start with how I had a complete stranger drive me home. Taking a complete risk trusting a stranger in a foreign country alone. Not smart, well not necessarily because he was a friend of a friend and I ended up A-Okay!!

But I imagine I should go earlier in the evening when we were discussing a current topic in Melbourne news how a woman had been kidnapped and murdered. In the past week, walking home from her local pub in a neighbourhood I could have and may still live in. Maybe as a young woman in a new city I should be wary of what I do where and when. 

Maybe next time I’ll sleep on a couch, but where’s the adventure in that!